


Shelter from the Storm

by xensilverquill



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, F/F, Hurt/Comfort, Storms
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-04
Updated: 2015-10-04
Packaged: 2018-04-24 17:18:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,003
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4928356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xensilverquill/pseuds/xensilverquill
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"It is a rainy, stormy morning when the text comes in." {Peridot/Reader}</p>
<p>Gift for Tarnit!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Shelter from the Storm

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Tarnit](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tarnit/gifts).



It is a rainy, stormy morning when the text comes in. Lightning flashes in bright, forked shapes outside the window. Thunder rolls and rattles the panes, making little tremors on the edge of your dreams. A buzzing, and then a _bing!_ in your ear bring you to full wakefulness. With a groggy groan you fumble around for your phone. You rub at your face with the heel of your palm, your sight bleary as you rapidly blink the sleep out of them.

**> > Help me! D:**

“Hm?” is all you can manage in response to the panicked message from your girlfriend. A stressed and frazzled Peridot texting you is nothing new. In fact, a day with her freaking out is something akin to a day without sunshine. Usually, though, her freak outs do not out start this early in the day. It is with some concern that you reply.

**What’s wrong, babe??? <<**

Not a second later, your phone is blowing up as she rants.

**> > I was out investigating some electromagnetic anomalies in Sector 3**

**> > And it just started raining out of nowhere**

**> > And it was too far away to run to the warp pad**

**> > And it’s still pouring**

**> > And I’m huddling under the bridge**

**> > And my limb enhancers are this close to just frying on me >A<;;**

**> > And it’s thundering and I’m cold and wet and scared**

**> > And I’m like ten blocks from your house please come get me!!!! ;A;**

You are rolling out of bed before she has even finished texting you. Not bothering to change out of your long, violet pajama bottoms and white tank top, you head towards the door as fast as your legs can carry you. You stop just long enough to grab your car keys, an umbrella, and the fluffiest towels you can grab out of the hall closet. There is little else on your mind but the picture of the green Gem, huddled all scared and alone beneath the bridge. You just know you need to get to her, and _soon_.

Quickly you send a text back in answer.

**Hey hey, calm down. Just sit tight I’ll be right there! <<**

**> > K ;W;**

A minute or two later you are driving down the wet, slick road towards the bridge. The world is damp and cool, the stretch of woods between there and your house misty. The headlights bounce off the fog, and the early morning is made terribly bright as the storm rages on overhead.

You know without having to think hard which bridge Peridot is talking about. It is the covered bridge where the two of you met nearly two years ago. It is the same place where you began to meet with her every Tuesday to just chat and hang out. It is the place where you two had your first kiss, your first date. It is the place where there have been harsh words and apologies and sweet-nothings spoken between the two of you. So many memories…

And it is the place where you find her now.

Peridot is sopping wet from head to toe, and it is not entirely due to the rainy deluge. When you drive up, she is staring out at the river and hugging herself tightly against the chilly breeze. Much as she looks like a soaked, reluctant kitten straight out of a bath, her lithe, emerald form is as beautiful as ever. Her head flicks up as the glow of your car’s headlights fall on her. Quickly she wipes at her face with those floating fingers (and your heart breaks just a little to know she has been crying) before she stumbles partway to meet you.

“Hey, babe,” you call out softly, umbrella in hand and the towels tucked under yours arms. “You okay?”

“Wh-what-- ACHOO! – do _you_ th-think?” she sniffled miserably. All the same, she readily melts into your waiting arms.

Her eyes are tinged pink, and there are shadows under her tired eyes. She sniffs like she is congested with a dark green blush to her cheeks. You do not think Gems are physically capable of coming down with a cold, but it does not stop you from immediately wrapping your towels around her.

You start with her head, drying her face and ruffling her poofy, minty hair. Peridot buries her face in your shoulder as you continue to dry her and wrap her in towels. All the while you murmur softly to her, and the faintest whimpers echo up from her throat. By the time you are finished, she is not quite as wet and she has stopped shaking. Still, she is cold – much colder than usual, and far too cold for your liking. Wrapping a protective arm around her, you hold the umbrella over the both of you as you plod back towards the car.

Thought it is not particularly cold out today, you crank up the heat in your car warm her up. She begins to visibly relax in the passenger seat. She slumps against the dashboard, her body relaxing and a pleasant blush overtaking her cheeks. The Gem finally seems to allow herself a smile as she sits next to you, and you smile right back.

“Thanks, (y/n),” she says quietly. “For coming to get me, I mean. Guess we’re both just lucky you live so clo- Eep!”

A peal of thunder cracks overhead. The rain comes down even harder than before. It surprises you both, and you snap your head back to the road to keep from accidentally driving off it. When you glance back at her again, her lip is trembling and she has her fingers covering her face. Instinctively you reach out to take her free hand and thread your fingers through hers. You squeeze her hand gently; she squeezes back.

A few minutes later you are pulling back in to the driveway of your house, then into the garage. As the door slides behind, blocking out the rain and the cold, you get out and walk around to the other side. When you open the door, Peridot is just staring straight ahead, trying and failing to keep from dissolving into a teary mess again. She lets you take her by the hand, guiding the both of you inside the house.

Once in the kitchen, you take the damp towels off her and persuade her to take a seat in the booth of the breakfast nook. The cushions there are patchy and worn but soft, and she takes her accustomed place near the bay window. Offering a quilt for her to wrap up in, she wordlessly and gratefully takes the blanket from you and wraps up tightly in it. She stares with half-lidded eyes at the television when you flick it on, turn it to the local weather station.

“Want some tea?” you ask as you grab the kettle.

“Mmhm,” she murmurs back, gaze trained on the green. You turn the stove on high, fill up the kettle with water as hot as your faucet can manage, and go about preparing the tea.

_“And it looks like this low pressure system isn’t going away anytime soon, folks,”_ the anchor on the channel drones. _“High winds and thunderstorms will continue to batter the coastal area through next Monday. So if you’ve been saving change for a rainy day, now would be a good time to spend it. For the five-day forecast, you can expect highs in the--”_

The news goes on like that for the better part of ten minutes, and by then the kettle is whistling and screaming its indignation at being kept on the heat for too long. You pour a steaming mug of water, one for each of you, and begin steeping the tea bags (peppermint, her favorite and yours) as you skootch into the nook yourself. You sit just across from her. Laying your hand across the table, her fingers lay lightly over yours.

“Feeling better?” you venture, rubbing your thumb over one smooth digit.

“Yeah, I guess,” she sighs, steeping the tea to her liking before taking the bag out. “Not as wet at any rate, heh.” A weary smile finds its way on her lips. After a moment or two she tilts her head at you, looking down before glancing up sheepishly again. “(y/n)?”

“Yeah, Dot?”

“Since it doesn’t look like this rain is going to let up anytime soon, do you…” Peridot’s eyes go wide as she seems to struggle with something. Her face is so open and sweet in that moment you just want to lean forward and take those soft lips of hers between your own. But you hold back, waiting for her to speak.

“D-do you mind if I stay here for a while? With you?”

You giggle, something in your chest going absolutely warm and gooey. Reaching out, your palm comes up to caress the soft, delicate planes of her cheek. With a contented purr she leans in and brings her fingers up to weave their way through your hair. Those floating digits of hers are warm and buzz ever so slightly against your scalp. Your faces come within scarce inches of each other. You can smell her breathe, cool and carrying the faintest crackle of a spark on it, and your nose touches her petite one.

“Sure thing, babe,” you reply, “stay as long as you want.”

Her lips finally meet yours then. They are soft and pliant against yours. A little moan escapes the both of you as you lean forward. Your hands come up to hang on to her defined collar bone and angled shoulders. Both of Peridot’s hands come up to caress your face and slide up into your hair. She holds you steadily and tenderly in place as her tongue glides across your lips, silently begging for your permission. You grant it to her, and the kiss deepens into something fiery and passionate.

An hour later sees the both of you, naked and curled up in the safety of your bed. Your soft, downy blanket is wrapped around your waists. Her bare, generous breasts are a soft cushion beneath your head. Peridot’s fingers draw long, arc patterns up and down your back, coming up to briefly run through your hair. Her gaze is distant and warm like faraway mountains in spring. Yet when she looks down at you they brighten and seem to hold only you, as if you were the most precious thing to her in all the cosmos.

She cranes her neck forward, dipping her head to place tender kisses up and down your jaw, behind your ear. Then she turns her attention to your neck. First she places her lips just over your fluttering pulse. Peridot’s laugh – high-pitched but true and bright – echoes over your skin. Then she is nipping skin just a little before running over the same places with her cool tongue. Her ministration to your neck are expert and well-practiced, and she leaves you a blushing mess by the time she is through.

“Oh, babe,” she sighs sweetly, resting her temple lightly against your own. You can feel the facets of her gem, smooth and cool, against your skin. You rub ever so slightly against her, and she shudders pleasantly at the friction. Your fingers thread together once more, clasped together over your hips before coming to rest on her pudgy belly.

“I love you,” you say.

“What’d I do to deserve you?” she muses aloud, chuckling slightly before settling against the pillows. Then, brushing a lock of your hair aside, she leans in to whisper just so you can hear. “I love you so much, (y/n). Thank you for being there for me.”

And you stay like that for the rest of the day, drifting in and out of sleep. In the warmth and safety of your room, not even the storm outside can disturb the peace between you. There is no rain or thunder or hardship that can keep you apart; there is only love.

**Author's Note:**

> A gift-fic for a friend! Xandra, babe, I hope it's everything you wanted and more!


End file.
